Houghton Heights is one of a number of imposing and glamourous art deco apartment blocks to have been built on the Orange Grove escarpment. Designed in 1938 by John Shaw, it is a relic of a more elegant age: alternating bands of red and orange brick emphasise its sleekness, generous bay windows soak in northern light, and the vestibule is richly decorated with marble, brass and a clock above the lift door.